Case's Ferguson grown into impact player

Playing at the college level,
Ryan Ferguson (right) said, "The speed is so much different and the
players are a lot bigger. It took me time to get used to it." Now a
senior and Case's leading tackler, he's certainly
adjusted.
Case Western Reserve athletics photo

Case Western Reserve outside linebacker Ryan Ferguson is a
numbers guy. It comes with the territory of being a statistics
major.

So here are some numbers to consider about Ferguson.

At 6-feet and 180 pounds, Ferguson isn't exactly the most
fearsome defensive player in college football.

"He is small guy. You wouldn't think he would be such a good
football player by just looking at him," Case Western Reserve head
coach Greg Debeljak said.

Maybe not, but other numbers tell more of the story, such as the
team-best 62 tackles he has tallied this season. He has also forced
a fumble and has broken up four passes.

His production has risen steadily since his arrival on campus.
He had only six tackles as a freshman and just 11 stops as a
sophomore. A year ago, Ferguson moved into a starting role and
thrived, racking up 95 tackles.

"I came in as an inside linebacker but I played outside
linebacker and had a pretty good season," Ferguson said. "Workouts
went well in the offseason for me, and I feel like things have been
good so far. Being at outside linebacker is a much better fit for
me."

The numbers don't end there for Ferguson. Not only is he in the
midst of playing football and taking classes, but he is also
studying for Actuarial Exams, which are a series of
professional-level exams that must be passed in order to be
admitted into an actuarial society.

Topics on the exams include mathematics, economics, finance,
law, accounting and investments. Just reading that sentence makes
my head spin. The difficulty of the exams can make even the most
complex plays in football look like one out of a flag football
playbook.

"I definitely have to keep my priorities straight," Ferguson
said. "I have been extremely busy because I have to spend a lot of
time studying for those exams and still make time for my classes
and football. Staying focused has been important."

Ferguson went to a small private school in Wheaton, Ill. He
attended St. Francis and was an All-Area, All-Suburban Catholic
Conference and All-State selection as a senior while playing tight
end and inside linebacker. He also played basketball in high
school.

Moving to the college level was a challenge.

"I didn't play on a big team, so it was big change coming to
college," Ferguson said. "The speed is so much different and the
players are a lot bigger. It took me time to get used to it."

Ferguson played in four games as a freshman and in six games as
a sophomore. He caught his big break in the 2011 season opener.

With Mike Fioramanti out with an injury, Ferguson was called
upon to step up as a starter for the first time -- and he thrived.
He highlighted his performance with an interception return for a
touchdown and a fumble return for a touchdown, both plays proving
to be key in a 24-17 win over John Carroll. Ferguson also tallied
nine tackles.

"It was a huge confidence boost for me," Ferguson said. "It got
rid of all of the nerves I had and allowed me to react more on
defense. I played with a lot of confidence the rest of the
season."

The confidence has carried over to this year. But it goes beyond
confidence for Ferguson. His work ethic in the offseason was solid,
and while he isn't the biggest or strongest linebacker, he has
found other ways to make sure he is in a position to make an
impact.

"I put a lot of emphasis on conditioning in the offseason,"
Ferguson said. "Also, I am more diligent in film study. Any
advantage I can gain on an opponent through watching film is an
advantage I need. I am not the biggest or strongest guy on the
field, but I do what my coaches ask me to do and I play to the
whistle, which puts me in positions to make plays and be a great
tackler."

The Spartans have made their share of plays as a whole, but they
have also missed on some opportunities. They entered the bye week
at 3-3 and have one nonconference game remaining before entering
University Athletic Association action.

Almost every game has been close. The three losses Case has
suffered have been by a combined eight points. Two of their three
wins have been decided by three points as well.

The Spartans are out of the playoff picture a year after going
9-1 overall and 3-0 in the UAA, but that doesn't mean they are
going to hang their heads for the next four weeks.

"Last year, we won a lot of the close games, and this year, we
have lost some of those games," Debeljak said. "I like this
football team, but what I don't like is that we are 3-3. At times,
we have played very well, but we need to continue to improve and
focus on finishing the year strong."

Erik Olson has thrown for 1,249 yards and 10 touchdowns. But he
has also been picked off seven times.
Manny Sicre and Kenny Riordan have rushed for 424 yards and 209
yards, respectively, and have combined for three touchdowns.

Sean Lapcevic has been the leading receiver, catching 27 passes
for 398 yards and two scores. Brian Rice has caught 24 passes for
338 yards and one touchdown.

Kevin Nossem and Wade Self have stepped up defensively, tallying
57 and 55 tackles, respectively, while Adam Watson has come through
with 38 tackles.

The Spartans are averaging 365.3 yards per outing and allowing
296.5 yards per game.
If there is one thing that has hurt Case, though, it is turnovers.
The Spartans have turned the ball over 14 times and have only
forced six, a surprising statistic for a team that has a history of
thriving on turnovers.

"We have to do a better job of creating turnovers, and we have
to do a better job of taking care of the football," Debeljak said.
"We usually do a very good job in both of those areas. If we can
get better with that and just continue to play hard, we should have
a chance to win a conference title."

Oberlin is up next for the Spartans on Saturday. UAA action will
begin with a road game against Chicago.
And while the Spartans won't have a chance to clinch their first
playoff berth since 2009, they do have a chance to repeat as UAA
champions.

"We are coming off of a big win over Wooster (31-28) and we are
motivated to win our last four games," Ferguson said. "Every game
will be tough, but if we play our best, we know we have a chance to
win a championship again. It would mean a lot to us."

In the poll

Perhaps someone should consider just shutting off the visitor's
side of the scoreboard at Mount Union games
because the top-ranked Purple Raiders continue to dominate every
opponent in their path.

On Saturday, Mount Union crushed Capital 62-0, marking the fifth
consecutive game that it has blanked an opponent, one shy of the
school record for shutouts that was set in 2007. The Purple Raiders
are 6-0 overall and 5-0 in the Ohio Athletic Conference. They have
also won their last 69 regular season games.

Isaiah Scott played a key role in the victory, returning two
interceptions for touchdowns on runs of 84 yards and 40 yards.
Scott's brother, Joshua, recovered a fumble in the win. Both
players finished with two tackles apiece while Hank Spencer, Ted
Rosalva and Jonathan Gonell led the defense with five tackles
apiece.

Capital managed only 107 yards while the Purple Raiders rolled
up 518 yards of offense.

Wabash is up two spots to No. 13 this week
after knocking off Washington University 34-14 in a nonconference
tilt on Saturday.

The Little Giants rolled up 345 yards on the ground, including
166 by quarterback Chase Belton, who was knocked out of the game in
the second quarter with a concussion. Belton scored touchdowns on
runs of 69 yards and 56 yards. Tyler Holmes and CP Porter also came
through with rushing touchdowns.

Porter finished his day with 85 yards and Holmes churned out 75
yards. Wabash rolled up 479 yards and Washington finished with232
yards, including just 84 on the ground. Justin Woods paced the
defensive effort with eight tackles.

Heidelberg and Otterbein
entered their game on Saturday tied at No. 25 in the nation. This
OAC showdown of unbeaten teams turned out to be one-sided, however,
as the Student Princes rolled to a 21-0 victory and jumped to No.
19 in the poll this week.

Michael Mees threw a pair of touchdown passes in the win,
hooking up with Nate Hasse on a 28-yard pass and finding C.J.
Powell for a 22-yard scoring strike. Mees was 18-of-24 for 240
yards and was picked off once as Heidelberg improved to 6-0 overall
and to 5-0 in the OAC.

The Student Princes finished with 391 yards and Dawso Gore and
Craig Sykes led the defense with 10 tackles apiece as Heidelberg
held its fifth opponent of the year to 10 points or less.

Otterbein is now 5-1 overall and 4-1 in the conference. The
Cardinals were held to 213 yards and came up empty on both of their
red zone scoring opportunities. Ben Sizemore was 9-of-19 for 107
yards. Ryan Moore tallied nine tackles to lead the Otterbein
defense, which allowed a team to score more than 17 points for the
first time this year.

Inside the OAC

Ohio Northern delivered Dean Paul his 100th win at the school in
convincing fashion as the Polar Bears smashed Marietta 56-14 on
Saturday.

Tate Humphrey went 14 of 21 for 271 yards and
three touchdowns while Carter Paul rushed for a
career-high 121 yards and three scores for the Polar Bears, who are
no 2-4 overall and 2-3 in the OAC.

Ohio Northern cranked out 535 yards en route to its sixth
consecutive win over the Pioneers. Marietta managed 361 yards
against a defense that was anchored by the play of Ryan
Reid, who tallied nine tackles and picked off one
pass.

Tom Fulton paced the Pioneers as he completed
25 of his 55 passes for 290 yards and two touchdowns.

Baldwin Wallace dominated Wilmington 49-17 as the Yellow Jackets
picked up their second consecutive win and improved to 5-1 overall
and to 4-1 in the OAC.

Sebastian Zuluaga rushed for two touchdowns in
the victory and finished his day with 54 yards. Ryan
O'Rourke completed 10 of his 18 passes for 88 yards and
two scores as Baldwin Wallace racked up 403 yards while holding the
Quakers to 244 yards

Andrew Dziak and Michael
Stacchiotti tallied six tackles apiece.

Brandon Arehart led Wilmington by throwing for
194 yards on 20-of-28 passing. He threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to
Alex Koyfis, who also rushed 1 yard for a touchdown.

Inside the NCAC

Ohio Wesleyan is still perfect after rolling over Kenyon 33-14
on Saturday. The Battling Bishops, just 4-6 overall a season ago,
are unbeaten through six games and have a 4-0 record in the
conference. They are off to their first 6-0 start since the 2001
season.

Against Kenyon, kicker Miles MacKenzie took
center stage as he nailed four field goals, the second highest
total in a game in school history. His 15 points in the win pushed
his season total to 63 points, the highest in program history.

Mason Espinosa came through with another big
game as he completed 25 of his 39 passes for 277 yards and a
touchdown. Justin Segal had a productive day on
defense, racking up 14 tackles and forcing a fumble. He also had
one sack. Justin Swary stepped up for the defense as well,
returning an interception 67 yards for a score.

Dan Shannon threw for 178 yards to lead Kenyon
while Carlo Gagliardo made 10 catches for 127
yards and one touchdown.

Colin Hartford stepped up at just the right
time for Allegheny, intercepting a potential game-tying two-point
conversion pass with 37 seconds to go as the Gators held off DePauw
22-20 for their first 3-0 start in conference play since 2003 when
they last played in the NCAA playoffs. Allegheny is 4-2
overall.

Hartford racked up six tackles in the win while Bill Devlin
fueled the defense with 15 tackles, the most by any Allegheny
player in a game since November of 2010.

Tim Werley rushed for 96 yards and one
touchdown for the Gators. Justin Murray was 21-of-37 for 144 yards
and two scores as he played well despite the loss. The Tigers fell
to 1-5 overall and to 0-3 in the NCAC.

Inside the MIAA

Adrian took control of the top of the conference with a 10-3 win
over Trine on Saturday. The Bulldogs are 5-1 overall and 3-0 in the
conference. Trine dropped to 4-3 overall and to 2-1 in the
MIAA.

The Bulldogs have won five consecutive games and took a 10-0
lead into halftime. Dustin Salliotte drilled a
22-yard field goal and Taylor Copacia ran 1-yard for a
touchdown.

Tyler Keck's 22-yard field goal in the fourth
quarter accounted for the Thunder's only points of the day.

Danny Cobb paced the rushing attack of the
Bulldogs, churning out 130 yards. Copacia completed 8 of his 15
passes for 83 yards.

Ryan Hargraves led the Thunder as he hit on 11
of his 18 passes for 116 yards. Myron Puryear paced the defense
with nine tackles. Juwan King tallied eight
tackles to lead the Adrian defense, which limited Trine to 199
yards.

One of the keys to success for Adrian was the fact that it
controlled the ball for nearly 37 minutes.

Hope stayed within striking distance of the conference
championship after rolling to a 49-14 win over Alma on Saturday.
The Flying Dutchmen, who did lose to Adrian earlier this season,
improved to 3-4 overall and are 2-1 in the MIAA.

Reggie Duncan, second on the depth chart,
played a key role in the win. He carried the ball only four times
but rushed for three touchdowns on runs of 15, 4 and 25 yards. He
finished his day with 69 yards. Michael Atwell was 12-of-23 for 212
yards and two touchdowns. He was picked off once.

Santino DiCesare helped propel the defense as
he racked up nine tackles and picked off two passes.

Jarrett Leister threw for 114 yards and rushed
for 37 yards. He completed one touchdown pass and ran for another
score as Alma fell to 1-6 overall and to 1-2 in the conference.

Inside the PAC

Bethany had Waynesburg on the ropes Saturday afternoon, but with
18 seconds to play, Alex Henry drilled a 26-yard field goal that
lifted the Yellow Jackets to a thrilling 23-21 win.

Waynesburg has won its last three games by seven points or less
while the Bison once again fell short in gut-wrenching fashion,
losing their third game by four points or less. Bethany is 1-5
overall and 1-3 in the league while Waynesburg improved to 7-0 for
the first time since 2007. The Yellow Jackets are 5-0 in the
PAC.

Bertrand Ngampa rushed for 206 yards and two
touchdowns to pace Waynesburg, which trailed 15-7 at halftime.
Carter Hill completed 6 of his 13 passes for 94
yards. Bryan Gary led the defense with 13 tackles.

Matt Grimard gave Bethany a chance to win with
a solid performance. He threw a pair of touchdown passes to
Ed Holmes and also rushed for a touchdown. Grimard
was 25-of-40 for 261 yards and Holmes caught eight passes for 121
yards.

Washington and Jefferson kept its hopes intact for a PAC title
after edging Westminster 24-21 at home on Saturday.

The Presidents trailed 14-10 at halftime but battled back in the
second half to secure the win. Dion Wiegand scored
on a 2-yard run to give the Presidents the lead for good at 17-14
and a 3-yard run by Matt Bliss pushed the
Washington and Jefferson lead to 24-14.

Washington and Jefferson improved to 5-2 overall and to 4-1 in
the conference. Wiegand rushed for 79 yards and caught six passes
for 79 yards. Bliss was 25-of-44 for 312 yards and a touchdown.

Dak Britt rushed for 93 yards and two
touchdowns and also threw for 158 yards and a score to pace the
Titans, who slipped to 2-3 overall and to 1-3 in the PAC.

Perfection

Two teams remain undefeated in the OAC as Mount Union and
Heidelberg have yet to suffer a loss. The Purple Raiders play at
Otterbein this week while the Student Princes will battle Muskingum
at home. If both teams win, a showdown for first place will be set
for Oct. 27 in Alliance.

The lone unbeaten in the NCAC is Ohio Wesleyan. The Battling
Bishops could be playing for a conference title when they travel to
Allegheny on Nov. 3. The Gators are the only other team with a
perfect record in conference play.

Waynesburg is the lone unbeaten team left in the PAC. The Yellow
Jackets could be poised for an undefeated regular season as two of
their final three games are at home and the only remaining team
with a winning record is Washington and Jefferson.

Notes

Mark Myers broke his own single-game passing
record on Saturday in John Carroll's 55-28 win over Muskingum.
Myers threw for 474 yards and six touchdowns, beating out the 457
yards he threw for in the season opener against St. Norbert in
Ireland. His six touchdowns ties the mark set by Tom Arth in 2002.
Lane Robilotto broke the single-game receiving
record in the first half, catching eight passes for 257 yards. He
finished with 10 catches for 267 yards as the Blue Streaks improved
to 4-2 overall and 3-2 in the OAC....Ryan Fronius
and Dillon Goodell tallied seven tackles apiece to
help Geneva hold off Saint Vincent 30-22. Goodell leads the team in
tackles with 62 while Fronius has 47 tackles. The Golden Tornadoes,
who rolled up 422 yards, won despite turning the ball over four
times. They are now 2-4 overall and 2-2 in the PAC...Darrin
Williams rushed for 249 yards and a touchdown to lead
Albion to a 17-14 win over Kalamazoo. Williams scored on a 56-yard
run to give the Britons a 7-0 lead. Albion never trailed as it
improved to 4-2 overall and to 1-1 in the MIAA. Williams has rushed
for 467 yards and three touchdowns on the season.

Contact me

I love hearing from the readers and feel free to share your
thoughts in addition to potential story ideas. Also, don't hesitate
to let me know something remarkable a player or team did in a game.
You can reach me at brian.lester@d3sports.com or
follow me on Twitter: @BLester1993.